Paper & Ink

Ink Costs

• Black is our usual ink, and printing costs reflect this color.
• Standard color inks generally add $20 to the project. These include: blue, red, green, violet, brown, and turquoise
• PMS inks (matched colors) incur a $35 mixing fee.
• Light color and Metallic inks add $45 to the job. This is due to the extensive washing of the press required for proper printing of these colors.

Colors In Digital Printing

• The above does NOT apply to digital printing.
• Metallic inks are not available in digital printing.
• PMS colors are simulated (CMYK) and not always 100% accurate, although usually pose no problem.
• We generally print in RGB mode as it provides for deeper color saturation.

Uncoated Paper

Stationery stocks are available in several textures including smooth, linen, felt (soft, bumpy surface). Another type of paper has the parchment look, shades of one color in a cloudy type of look. Cover stock for this paper is thinner than others, and often not suitable for couble sided printing due to its limited opacity.

• Uncoated stocks: Uncoated stock is paper that has no clay finish applied to reduce the absorbency or increase the smoothness.
• The uncoated finishes can be described as vellum, antique, wove, or smooth.
• Available for printing also include linen paper (you can see "threads" in 2 directions), laid (has one directional ridges), columns (alternating shades of one color).
• Some are embedded with sparkles or complimentary tone speckles, particularly in recycled stocks.
• Recycled papers can have either pre or post consumer recycled components, and vary by content. Recycled papers are not available in all stocks.

For digital printing, smooth or coated papers are preferred, but not required.

Coated stocks

• A coated stock has a surface coating that has been applied to make the surface more receptive for the reproduction of text and images in order to achieve sharper detail and improved color density. By adding a coated clay pigment, the objective of coating the stock is to improve the smoothness and reduce the absorbency.
• Coated paper finishes can be categorized as matte, dull, cast, gloss, and high gloss. The coating can be on both sides of the stock (coated two sides, "C2S") or on one side only (coated one side, "C1S"). Coatings give a greater degree of permanency and the natural tendency to yellow is reduced.

Other Paper Specifications

• Paper also has thickness, but depending on the type of paper, have a different poundage (#) scale. Typical copy paper is 20#. Letterhead is generally 60# or 70#. Regular business cards are 80# or 10 point. Heavier cards, 88-100# or 12 pt. Also available are 120# or 14 point. Brochures are generally 60-70# writing, 80# or 100# gloss text, or sometimes light cover stock. Postcards can be on index stock from 90-110# (lighter than cover), vellum 65#, or cover 80-120
• A variety of samples are available at our office for your perusal. Be cautious about falling in love with a paper. Many are only available by the case and only suitable for huge jobs. Papers are also subject to fashion trends and experiments. When you choose a specialty paper for your image, there is no guarantee that it will still be available in a year.